3 Asian Restaurants to Help Battle the Cold

These Asian restaurants will keep you warm even in the middle of a blizzard.

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Boston winter may be beautiful, but after a couple weeks of looking out to nothing but grey skies, keeping morale up can sometimes be a bit difficult. Eventually everyone – even the die-hard snow fans – get sick of morosely trudging in slush.

Here’s a list of restaurants that, even in the coldest blizzard, will serve food that will warm you up and make you forget about the miserable walk you have to make to class or work tomorrow morning.

1. Shabu-zen

Located in Allston, this gem of a restaurant is known for its fantastic hot pot – so it’s quite literally going to warm you up.

A slightly less famous way of cooking (compared to standard dim sum or noodles), hot pot involves placing a large pot on a stove in the middle of the table. The pot is often divided in two, and is filled with different flavoured soups that will come to a boil. After this, you add your platters of raw meat and vegetables – once they’re done cooking, dip them in any of the endless number of sauces, and eat it with your bowl of rice.

Shabu-zen offers more than your standard amount of meat per platter, so you know you’ll get your money’s worth. While waiting for your meats to arrive, you can enjoy the spices in the hot soup that will undoubtedly get your blood flowing.

2. Hot Eastern

Finding good Szechuan food in Boston can sometimes be difficult, but Hot Eastern has been named justly. Located in a basement in Chinatown, Hot Eastern’s family-style round tables and ornate decor only adds to the authenticity of the restaurant.

Running underground from the cold already gives you an adrenaline rush, and by the time you’ve finished your meal, you’ll be sweating. Hot Eastern offers a range of dishes with varying spice levels – anything from “I need some ice water” to “my mouth is on fire.”

3. Gyu-Kaku

Korean Barbeque that gives you the most bang for your buck, Gyu-Kaku is an ideal restaurant to spend a couple of hours eating at. The cooking style is similar to Hot Pot, in that you select platters of raw meat and vegetables which you cook yourself on the mini barbecue pit in the middle of your table.

One issue: since this is the perfect season for Korean Barbecue (and Gyu-Kaku is the amazing restaurant that it is), getting a table can be a bit difficult; if you book a table for party of 3, all of you better show up on time or you’ll find yourself waiting half an hour before you eat. Quick tip though – although the Fenway branch is busy 24/7 (and will have a 1 hour wait unless you reserve a table), the Gyu-Kaku near Harvard Square often has a third the number of customers – but the food is just as good.

Bonus: They have some of the best happy hour deals so make sure you go at the right time to really go all out.